Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Are these notes helpful to you?

Suddenly the need to write relevant, purposeful project notes on Ravelry project pages has presented itself. The new 'Are these notes helpful to you?' feature demands a utilitarian perspective on a space that I had heretofore used to write such bromides as 'I love Jitterbug' and 'I've said it before and I'll say it again, I hate mohair'. I now feel an urgent need to go back and recall all the truly useful details such as yardage issues, guage riddles and modifications that might assist others. I have to say that I love this concept as I've always felt writing with constraints to be a particularly productive endeavor. Now Ravelry has given us a reason to write with helpfulness in mind. I love it! My wish now is to undertake all in the name of the Helpful.

During my recent travels I picked up a yarn with the single-most intriguing name ever to spring forth from the world of branding: Jojoland Melody. The name Jojoland resonates with me on so many levels: is it a mythical place where Hello Kitty and her pals reside? Is it an oddball term translated awkwardly from the Japanese? Can I go there and meet Jojo? However you slice it, I would like to offer my strong admiration for the madcap individual who dreamt up this heavenly name and all that it represents. Luckily the yarn itself lives up to its inscrutable name--the color is mood-ring gorgeous and the softness is notable. I don't know who Jojo is, but I know that I want to take up permanent residence in his/her (?) land of twee enchantment.

I'm off to Minneapolis today to assist with my dad's return home from a nursing home --yes, that does occasionally happen, much to our happiness and relief. Once there I will be spending some quality time at the fancy grocery store's salad bar and seeking out many falafel opportunities--something that I am unable to do here in the 1950s (i.e. central Pennsylvania). Normally this is the point in the post where I'd offer some tepid remarks about 'no LYS action for me', but I think we know each other well enough at this point to dispense with that, right?

22 comments:

I'll be interested to see what you think of the Jojoland after knitting. I've been intrigued by it for a long time, but was warned off by some serious complaints by other knitters. Can't remember what, exactly, just that I tagged it a "don't buy." So I'd like to see how it works out for you.

My dad also came home from a nursing home after a fairly short stay for an illness, and has been at home for three years. Good luck to your dad!

Ha! I'll be visiting my parents in the 1950's (i.e., Mechanicsburg, PA) this weekend. . .My feelings exactly. Of course, they still have a rotary phone, so it's not too far off the mark, really. At least you can get Utz chips there!

Have a lovely time with your Dad. And stuff your face—falafelyuuuuuuuum.

Since you brought up the whole "helpful" thing, can I go on a little rant here? Though I admire the noble spirit behind it, my first reaction when I saw it was "aw man...". I'm not sure I need another thing to feel inadequate about. The interwebs is slowly transforming my light, fun, relaxing hobby into something that feels more and more like work—minus the paycheck (my day job mostly consists of trying really hard to write "relevant, purposeful" text for the public). Not only do I need to knit masterfully and prolifically, take professional-grade photos, but now I have to be pithy and eloquent too?

I mean, any activity which freely and earnestly uses the term "jojoland" should not be this much work, right?

Of course, if I was a bigger person, I wouldn't give a rat's ass about whether I got "helpful" votes or not. But let's face it, I'm not that mature. I'm gonna want them, covet them, crave them, and wonder what went wrong when I don't get them.

But, "I hate mohair" IS a helpful comment, seriously. I would have bought a lot more mohair blends in the last year, before ever trying it out, if I hadn't read that very comment on Ravelry dozens of times. Don't get too caught up in making sure your posts are useful, you never know what will be useful to someone else.

Next time you are in Chicago let me know. My once-Swedish neighborhood is awash in Falafel...and Babaganoush and Hummus and...well, anything really. (One of my favorite restaurants sports some very amusing menu typos--it's quite the game to find as many as you can before dinner arrives.) And hope all goes well with your dad.

Every time I see the name Jojoland, I get the Beatles stuck in my head ("Jojo was a man who thought he was a woman ..."). It's a good thing the yarn is so pretty! I have two skeins in my stash but have yet to find a project worthy of them.

I have to admit- I love Byerly's. Grocery stores with carpet, chandeliers, lots of imported chocolate, and things like an olive bar, what's not to love?! Though the St. Paul Rainbow Foods off of Lexington and Larpenteur is amazing... no carpet, but the place looks positively palatial and has a great produce section and salad bar to boot!

I have always been suspicious of a yarn that reminds me of Elvis--after all, can Jojoland be far from Graceland? I think I actually DON'T want to go there, but if you go, you can let us all know how it is.